112P - A novel methylation-sensitive assay for early detection of hepatocellular carcinoma to improve surveillance

Background

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a hazardous malignancy that poses a significant threat due to its asymptomatic nature and lack of an effective detection method. Individuals with chronic liver inflammation, who have a high risk of developing HCC, therefore require a sensitive detection method.

Methods

In this work, we performed a meta-analysis utilizing The Cancer Genome Atlas pan-cancer methylation database to look for promising biomarkers for HCC identification. Our findings included a methylated CpG island among many areas with distinct methylation patterns in HCC. We developed a methylation-sensitive high-resolution melting (MS-HRM) technique to detect the methylation levels of these areas in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) recovered from HCC patients. The feasibility of the assay for early-stage HCC detection was investigated.

Results

The MS-HRM approach enabled us to precisely measure the methylation levels in cell-free DNA recovered from HCC patients. Significantly, our MS-HRM test outperformed pre-existing techniques, successfully identifying 40% of patients with early-stage HCC.

Conclusions

Our results support the use of MS-HRM analysis as a viable tool for HCC monitoring. Our innovative technique has potential for improving early identification and subsequent care of this life-threatening malignancy by delivering enhanced sensitivity in identifying early-stage HCC compared to conventional assays.

Editorial acknowledgement

Clinical trial identification

Legal entity responsible for the study

Yonsei University.

Funding

Ministry of Science & ICT.

Disclosure

All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.